Lynch School sale to be decided later in summer

HOLYOKE – In order to ensure the sale of the Lynch School moves forward to a retail developer, the City Council will have to schedule a special meeting later this summer.

Rory Casey, the chief of staff for Mayor Alex Morse, explained to Reminder Publications, that a vote on accepting the winning bid from Frontier Development LLC must be taken before a 90-day period elapses. He added that the City Council’s scheduled meeting on Aug. 5 falls outside of that time frame.

Casey said he anticipates Morse will ask for a meeting for the full council after another meeting of the council’s Committee on Development and Government Affairs. That committee is expected to meet within a week, he added.

The Lynch School, which has been closed for five years, is part of a plan presented by School Superintendent Dr. Sergio Páez. Páez wanted to transfer preschool students from the Metcalf School in order to free up space for a move of the School Department offices.

Casey said, “The School Department now knows they are not getting Lynch back.”

Morse explained in a public letter he wants the sale of the property to go through, as it would provide additional tax revenue to the city.

In a letter to Councilor David Bartley dated June 10, Kara Lamb Cunha, the second city solicitor clarified the sale of the Lynch School would require a “simple majority vote” of the complete council, while a transfer back to the School Department would have to have a two-thirds vote. Morse would also have to approve the transfer and could block it with no option of override from the council.